Loam game now available at the Timberjay

TOWER- Did you know there are more living things in a spoonful of soil that there are people on this planet? Soil biologist Max Helmberger, of Tower, has been fascinated by the tiny creatures that live in soil since he was a child. Now, he has just released a new strategy game to introduce others to the amazing world that lies in the soil beneath our feet.
Helmberger is currently a post-doctoral fellow and lecturer at Boston University and he developed the game, named “Loam,” as an educational tool for students learning soil ecology. It’s a strategy card-matching game with an objective of building healthy soil by competing with other players to obtain the right mix of organisms. Players explore the soil’s weird and wonderful biodiversity through a variety of cards, each with Helmberger’s anatomically accurate illustrations and information about each organism.
The game can be played by one to four players and is aimed at ages 10 to adult.
Packed into a small box, the game features 120 “creature cards.” Players take turns to grow the health of their soil by assembling communities of organisms, invertebrates, and insects that work together to create healthy soils. The game also includes an instruction book, playing pieces, and a quick start guide. Instructions for the game are also available in an online video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXbY2cYIysE, or search YouTube for “How to Play Loam.” The game also includes instructions for solo play, and some more advanced game modes once players have mastered the basic strategies. Playing time can be as short as 15 minutes but will vary depending on how many are playing.
A few copies of Loam are now available for sale at the Timberjay office in Tower. The game retails for $39.99, and there are only a limited number available. Since it was financed through crowd funding, the initial production run was limited to the number of pre-orders, which included orders from some retail outlets, including the online site gamesandstuffonline.com.
The game was funded through a website that specializes in game startups and it reached its funding goal in less than 10 days, eventually raising over $20,000 to produce Loam. An employee-owned printing facility in California manufactured the game.
Max is the son of Timberjay owners Jodi Summit and Marshall Helmberger. He graduated from Tower-Soudan High School in 2011, earned his BS degree from UMD, a Masters from Cornell, and a PhD in Entomology from Michigan State University. He is currently teaching classes on soil ecology as well as educational game design.